Frostblood – Elly Blake

Seventeen-year-old Ruby is a Fireblood who has concealed her powers of heat and flame from the cruel Frostblood ruling class her entire life. But when her mother is killed trying to protect her, and rebel Frostbloods demand her help to overthrow their bloodthirsty king, she agrees to come out of hiding, desperate to have her revenge.

Despite her unpredictable abilities, Ruby trains with the rebels and the infuriating—yet irresistible—Arcus, who seems to think of her as nothing more than a weapon. But before they can take action, Ruby is captured and forced to compete in the king’s tournaments that pit Fireblood prisoners against Frostblood champions. Now she has only one chance to destroy the maniacal ruler who has taken everything from her—and from the icy young man she has come to love. (Goodreads)

Published in January 2017 by Hodder & Stoughton, Frostblood is a fantasy story following Ruby, a strong-willed, independent girl with a unique power to wield frost and snow. In a world where Firebloods rule, her power can only get her into trouble.

I gave this novel 2.5 stars. I adored the writing style and pacing from page one, but the plot took about a third of the novel to pick up. The beginning, whilst slow, did give great background info about Ruby and the world she lives in.

The plot twists throughout really didn’t surprise me, and the entire story felt familiar (think Red Queen). Ruby felt bland as a character to me, and I really struggled to connect with her.

Overall, whilst I didn’t love this novel, it was still a solid fantasy story involving powers, royalty and fighting, so if that’s your ‘thing’ then this might be a worthwhile read for you.